With the Masback news, this will be the first year I watch only BBC for Olympic track coverage. Adios, NBC.
With the Masback news, this will be the first year I watch only BBC for Olympic track coverage. Adios, NBC.
Hutchings is a pleasure to listen to: knows the athletes, calls the sprints/hurdles in real time, can spot the leader on the curve In every relay, and is at least as good at calling mid/long distance as Masback. NBC understand this, but fears the American public will be put off by his "foreign" accent.
mar828 wrote:
With the Masback news, this will be the first year I watch only BBC for Olympic track coverage. Adios, NBC.
I wouldn't get too excited about the BBC either, although I like Cram:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/mediapacks/rio/tvPresenter: Gabby Logan
Commentators: Steve Cram, Brendan Foster, Andrew Cotter, Steve Backley
Guests: Michael Johnson, Denise Lewis, Paula Radcliffe, Colin Jackson
Reporter: Phil Jones
And dig the BBC's photoshopped illustrations of its presenters.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/mediapacks/rioIt looks like the Olympics will be broadcast from the planet Pandora.
I assume OP is being sarcastic. Hutchings is much better than Masback.
Hutchings is good for real fans of the sport. However, for the general public he's foreign and critical of US athletes at times. Those who know track realize he's spot on with this type of analysis though.
It's not surprising really that NBC won't use him for the Olympics, a US hype fest of gold for Team USA!
Hopefully, we can avoid NBC coverage this Olympics and view the events online.
Do any of you nerds complaining about NBC understand how business works? They spend billions of dollars for the rights to broadcast the Olympics. Do you think it makes more sense to cater to the 98% of viewers who know nothing about track and field, or the 2% of track nerds. If it's my business I would care about the 98%.
Who cares? I don't want to watch 2 hours of 100m warmups, false starts, reruns and interviews. Then, 20 seconds of the 5000 wrapped around commercials.
I am not being sarcastic.
I think Hutchings showcased his immaturity at the Trials broadcast - he constantly and consistently questioned why Galen Rupp would be running on the track. He said "it makes no sense. He should be focused solely on the marathon" etc., etc.. it was even worse during the 5000m. He didn't get it. He put his emotion and his opinion in the broadcast way too much. Who the F is Tim Hutchings to tell Rupp (an Olympic Silver Medalist) and Salazar (coach of multiple Olympic Gold medals) what they are doing is wrong?
Hutchings needs to stop thinking he was the best runner of all time. He was not. No one knows him. I don't even know what he did as an athlete that is respectable and I could Google it, but I don't care.
At least Ato Boldin has Olympic success and has authenticity and the success to back it up. Hutchings is a pretender and it shows in his "know it all" broadcasting.
He was right about Rupp though. He shouldn't have run the 5km. His analysis was correct. Rupp got destroyed by domestic competition in his last race before the Olympics, not ideal.
you don't know sh!t, Track Name.
Rupp learned so much in that 5000m as a competitor. It was his best race as a professional. He tried to steal the race. It was freaking awesome. It didn't impact him one bit, because unlike most Americans, Rupp doesn't have an ego. It's why he doesn't have Instagram or Facebook or Twitter. The dude rolls to the beat of his own drum.
No one is doing what he is doing. Not even Mo.
alanson wrote:
Hutchings is a pleasure to listen to: knows the athletes, calls the sprints/hurdles in real time, can spot the leader on the curve In every relay, and is at least as good at calling mid/long distance as Masback. NBC understand this, but fears the American public will be put off by his "foreign" accent.
Why isn't American public put off by foreign golf announcers?
Besides, Hutchings isn't foreign, he's English. Native English speakers are not considered by the general American public.
Now, if Hutchings was Syrian that would be a completely different story......and you know it.
Big Broski wrote:
Do any of you nerds complaining about NBC understand how business works? They spend billions of dollars for the rights to broadcast the Olympics. Do you think it makes more sense to cater to the 98% of viewers who know nothing about track and field, or the 2% of track nerds. If it's my business I would care about the 98%.
First, Craig Masback doesn't appeal to 98% of Americans. I expect most Americans hear him drone on and think "Track is boring. When is swimming going to be on?"
Second, watch the coverage of any other sport. Commentators don't dumb down commentary for football, basketball, baseball, etc. They talk about the details, which is what makes any sport interesting. Dumbing things down is the opposite of what track commentators should do if they want viewers to get interested.
I feel sorry for you guys. We have the best athletics commentator ever - Bruce McAvaney. Here is his call of Geb vs Tergat 10000 Sydney backed up by Deek.
Grawlix wrote:
Big Broski wrote:Do any of you nerds complaining about NBC understand how business works? They spend billions of dollars for the rights to broadcast the Olympics. Do you think it makes more sense to cater to the 98% of viewers who know nothing about track and field, or the 2% of track nerds. If it's my business I would care about the 98%.
First, Craig Masback doesn't appeal to 98% of Americans. I expect most Americans hear him drone on and think "Track is boring. When is swimming going to be on?"
Second, watch the coverage of any other sport. Commentators don't dumb down commentary for football, basketball, baseball, etc. They talk about the details, which is what makes any sport interesting. Dumbing things down is the opposite of what track commentators should do if they want viewers to get interested.
Holy crap do you not get it. Comparing track to football, basketball, baseball is totally absurd. Those sports are 6-9 month sports with billions in marketing behind it and blogged about, etc. You don't need to tell people about the athletes or what's going on, they know! I think I'm being generous saying 2% of TV viewers know Galen Rupp, who gets the limelight one night every 4 years. Of course you have to give commentary that a hardcore fan of a niche sport would find ridiculous, to involve the 98% and get them to care.
Track Name wrote:
Hutchings is good for real fans of the sport. However, for the general public he's foreign and critical of US athletes at times. Those who know track realize he's spot on with this type of analysis though.
It's not surprising really that NBC won't use him for the Olympics, a US hype fest of gold for Team USA!
Hopefully, we can avoid NBC coverage this Olympics and view the events online.
+1. He's not my favourite but i like how he criticizes/praises/give opinions about other athletes in general.
Sometimes his opinion is a bit off, but hey he is miles better than any NBC commentators.
Cram and Storey are the best of the best though
Don't pop a hemorrhoid there buddy.
Gvl wrote:
I am not being sarcastic.
I think Hutchings showcased his immaturity at the Trials broadcast - he constantly and consistently questioned why Galen Rupp would be running on the track. He said "it makes no sense. He should be focused solely on the marathon" etc., etc.. it was even worse during the 5000m. He didn't get it. He put his emotion and his opinion in the broadcast way too much. Who the F is Tim Hutchings to tell Rupp (an Olympic Silver Medalist) and Salazar (coach of multiple Olympic Gold medals) what they are doing is wrong?
Hutchings needs to stop thinking he was the best runner of all time. He was not. No one knows him. I don't even know what he did as an athlete that is respectable and I could Google it, but I don't care.
At least Ato Boldin has Olympic success and has authenticity and the success to back it up. Hutchings is a pretender and it shows in his "know it all" broadcasting.
Oh boy.
1) Tim telling Alberto Salazar what he was doing wrong (300 trillion + 3 things) was the absolute best part of the entire broadcast.
2) I know about Tim Hutchings. He was silver medalist at the World Cross Country Championships in 1984 and 1989. In 1984 he set his PR of 13:11.50 in the 5k at the 1984 Olympics. He came in 4th place at the 1984 Olympics.
3) Tim Hutchings will always be superior in every possible way to Tom Hammond and/or Craig Masback.
4) Tim has a British accent... which is still not as good as an Australian accent... but still way better than Tom Hammond or Craig Masback.
5) Ato is good. I like Ato.
Big Broski wrote:Holy crap do you not get it. Comparing track to football, basketball, baseball is totally absurd. Those sports are 6-9 month sports with billions in marketing behind it and blogged about, etc. You don't need to tell people about the athletes or what's going on, they know! I think I'm being generous saying 2% of TV viewers know Galen Rupp, who gets the limelight one night every 4 years. Of course you have to give commentary that a hardcore fan of a niche sport would find ridiculous, to involve the 98% and get them to care.
The problem is that the commentary for track - especially Hammond and Masback - is on par with always explaining that you have to move the ball 10 yards to make a 1st down in football. Or with constantly interrupting coverage of a football game to show human interest interviews or what's going on at a baseball game.
You will never convert anyone into a fan of track if the commentary is always on such a superficial and disjointed level. That's true not just for fans but for everyone. Treat the audience with some respect and they will be more interested in track, not less.
Tim Hutchings â€@TimHutchings1 15m15 minutes ago
The idea for me @Rio2016_en is to work as analyst for @NBCSports (NBCSN) on all T&F morning sessions with @KennyAlbert & the Marathons too.